Municipal Services Committee Recommends Polystyrene Ban

Municipal Services Committee meeting on April 26, 2016 (Photos – Meeting chamber, Staff / Mayor and Councilmembers – cityofpasadena.net).

At a standing room only crowd, a presentation by a Department of Public Works staff, and a lengthy (1 ½ hour) public hearing with forty filled out speakers’ cards, the MSC moved the ordinance to appear before the City Council by unanimous vote.

By Morey Wolfson

Department of Public Works Staff Member Gabriel Silva described how (DART) created their “false and empty program rinse and recycle” program in Pasadena.

Silva said:

 Polystyrene placed in our curbside residential recycling bins takes a scenic route to the landfill.

Silva added that no commercial haulers in Pasadena recycle polystyrene. He described how the City of Los Angeles planned to have a one year pilot polystyrene recycling program but abandoned it after three months. He also described his survey of restaurants and price differences between polystyrene and alternative containers.

Councilmember Andy Wilson had to excuse himself ten minutes before MSC Chair Councilwoman Margaret McAustin and Mayor Terry Tornek deliberated. Before he left, Wilson said that Pasadena is not a “pioneer” on this topic, given 65 California cities with city-wide polystyrene packaging bans. He said that Pasadena should not be fearful to join these cities, as many of them have long experience working with their polystyrene ordinances.

Councilmember Margaret McAustin said that the MSC has heard this matter on several occasions and “we have been educated.” She described how the Council’s agenda schedule caused a delay in moving the ordinance forward, saying that it should have been brought forward in 2015. She asked Staff to incorporate a “Bring Your Own Container-BYOC” component to the education effort that must accompany the ordinance.

Mayor Terry Tornek said that despite the interest in being a “Green City,” that is not the City’s only goal, referencing the need to be sensitive to businesses, and the need to find a balance, and be patient, as sometimes things take a long time. He referenced a recent meeting that he and Councilmember Wilson attended (sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce and the California Restaurant Association,) where restaurant owners complained that an ordinance would hurt their bottom line. The Mayor emphasized that they listened to the complaints, but the additional cost to a Styrofoam restaurant is not the full cost, which is the cost that’s being passed on to the rest of us and the environment. The mayor concluded that it is overdue for the City to enact a polystyrene ordinance – and he moved affirmative recommendation for Council approval.

Pasadena Residents celebrating after the Pasadena Municipal Services Committee meeting, April 26, 2016 (Photo – Staff).

When will the City Council take up the ordinance?

Mayor Tornek will check with the Interim City Manager to determine the best date for the topic to be placed on the Council agenda. (We will keep you posted as soon as that is clarified).

What’s next?

Five votes are required to pass a City ordinance in Pasadena. It is safe to assume that three votes (from the members of the MSC) are already in favor of the ordinance.

Councilmember Tyron Hampton, Councilmember Victor Gordo, Councilmember Gene Masuda, and Councilmember John Kennedy will soon be asked to support the ordinance. Of note: in 2011, the Pasadena City Council passed the ordinance to ban single-use plastic bags in a unanimous vote.

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